1. World War II

2. The Allied Offensive North Africa (1942-1943) Italy (1943-1944)
Summer 1942 – British forces pushed Germans back into Libya
Ended threat to the vital Suez Canal
November 1942 – an American army landed in French North Africa
Swept eastward through Morocco & Algeria led by General George S. Patton
Briefly stopped in Tunisia before Patton led impressive string of victories
May Rommel abandoned North Africa
300,000 German troops captured
Italy ( )
July 1843 – 250,000 British & American troops landed on Sicily
Staging ground for invasion of southern Italy
Sept – Invasion of Italy began
Popular uprising in Rome forced Mussolini from power
Italy then surrendered but Germany continued to pour in reinforcements
Fighting intensified over the next nine months
Jan – Battles of Montecasino & Anzio
June Rome liberated
April Mussolini & mistress captured & executed by Italian partisans

4. Invasion of Normandy Air Campaign against Germany Operation Overlord
: Allied forces made devastating air raids
Targeted German railroads, factories and weapon emplacements
Extensive material damage & civilian loss of life
Designed to support Allied offensives in Russia & Italy
Not successful in forcing German surrender
Operation Overlord
Allies decided to open a Western front to force the Germans to divert forces from the Italian & Russian fronts
Largest amphibious assault in history
4000 transports, 800 warships, 12,000 aircraft
June 6, 1944 – 6 Allied army divisions (3 U.S., 2 British, & 1 Canadian) landed on the beaches of Normandy
100,000 troops reached shore over the first two days
Swelled to 500,000 within ten days
By July 1, one million Allied troops had landed at Normandy
Allied armies began to move across Northern France
August 25, 1944 – Paris was liberated